A 71-year-old fisherman and his 67-year-old wife drowned Thursday morning when their fishing boat capsized about 30 meters off Suzu, Ishikawa Prefecture, the Japan Coast Guard said.
Yuko Yanagiya and his wife, Kimiko, died after their small boat capsized in the Sea of Japan at around 5:20 a.m., the JCG said.
The boat was damaged and bore red paint, thought to be from another vessel, on its stern, suggesting it was in a collision, the coast guard said.
The couple had set sail at around 4 a.m. from Kodomari fishing port in Suzu, according to the Takojima fisheries cooperative to which their vessel belonged.